How is your campaign going?

[Lord Dakier]

This is for any version of RSII. Thought it would be interesting to hear who everyone was playing as and what they'r strategies and current plans are for their factions.

I'm currently playing 2.5 with the One-turn Gallaecci, I've taken the majority of Spanish Peninsular and there is a lot of contesting around Carthago_Nova with Carthage. The war has only just begun but has seen some bloodshed already.

So now the only currently safe position for Carthage in Spain is the most southern Province. Luck would have it that the Romans who are also sworn enemies with Carthage allied with our cause.

Emporiae also rebelled against the Romans, so before Carthage, Averni or the Greeks in Massylia had chance I made sure to bribe them and take it for my own. Couldn't allow the Romans a foothold into our lands should the worst happen.

So my plans are to simply take all of Spain. Once this is done I'll slow my expansion to upgrade, I can't rely on my Capital and second city to reinforce my armies specially as I play 1-Turn. Once we have 2 more cities which can recruit the best troops I plan to expand possibly into North Africa and continue the war with Carthage or move into Brittania through Ireland.

For the current military plans I'm going to create a new stack of elite units. My military structure is mainly an organised Roman-style force consisting of my general, 1 Elite scuttari swordsmen, 8 scuttari swordsmen, 5 Falarica javelinmen, 2 Heavy cavalry and 3 Medium Cavalry. My elite army will consist 9 Elite scuttari swordsmen instead.

Should anyone else have suggestions I would be welcomed to hear them. So how does your campaign fair?

[ur-Lord Tedric]

Both of them. In the first I had not too long before dished up the Gallaeci before I had to finish; but this time they're allied to me; but I bet they become turncoats before too long.

http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=530912

[Lord Dakier]

A very nice read Tedric! Do your best to keep those Gallaecci safe. I find them a very interesting faction as they have the ability to be either barbaric forces or very Roman styled forces.

Will you do any sort of crusade to Britain. When I play Rome I usually go Italy, Spain, Britain in terms of conquest. I like to keep very tight boarders.

[Sertorio]

On my gallaeci campaign i had to deal with Carthage and Rome first. Even when you take all of the Peninsula you still have a crossing near Gadir so i bet Carthage wont let you sleep a lot. Rome presented a problem in 2.1 exactly because Emporiae but since you have taken it, they may leave you alone as long as Massilia stays greek, acting as a buffer. In my 2.5 Carthage Campaign, the free-greeks present at the moment the greatest economical and military power wich is interesting.

As to your military structure i used a similar one but with less Falarica and elite scutary. Never had more than 1 Elite infantry because they are suposed to be the best of the best.

It was something like 4 Scutari/caetrati maniples 3 Elite Scutari + 1 Elite infantry, 2 celtiberian spearmen,2 slingers, 2 Falarica specialy against Carthaginean elephants, 2 heavy cavalry, 3 medium or scutari cavalry and general.

The infantry deployed in the manipular chequered formation with the lighter infantry absorbing the first impact of the fight and the heavy in the second line charging over a tired exhausted enemy.

[CTD_or_Bust]

..., they may leave you alone as long as Massilia stays greek, acting as a buffer. In my 2.5 Carthage Campaign, the free-greeks present at the moment the greatest economical and military power wich is interesting.
...

In my campaigns I've taken this a step further and actively created buffer rebels to keep my enemies away when I cannot hold against them over time. Example:

Chillin at Emporiae, bad bad Carthaginians afoot. I beat them back once or twice and send my mobile legion to conquer Sagunton. I let Sagunton rebel by leaving it, cranking up the taxes, wrecking all the buildings and parking just outside so Carthage can't get clever and occupy it.

Poof, Roman Rebels between you and Carthago Nova|Baikor. Now what really rustles your jimmies is factions will make peace with the Roman Rebels. And everyone knows the false Romans will not dare to attack you in the same numbers as Carthage or the nearby Barbarians. So you have yourself a nice little buffer state that at the very least makes Carthage waste time recapturing their settlement. At best though.. no more war from that front by Carthage. They'll basically fizzle out. You may see sporadic attacks but they have to path from Carthago Nova to Baikor to Numantia (if they have it!) to Emporiae. It makes a huge difference. That leaves you free to build up in safety or attack from alternative approaches.

This is less of a boon for Gaul as it is much easier to cut across than Iberia. However in Macedonia, Greece, near-Anatolia and the western most parts of the Ptolemaic empire it will work efficiently. I've never tried it in lesser Germanica, Brittania or in the northeast.

[Lord Dakier]

In my campaigns I've taken this a step further and actively created buffer rebels to keep my enemies away when I cannot hold against them over time. Example:

Chillin at Emporiae, bad bad Carthaginians afoot. I beat them back once or twice and send my mobile legion to conquer Sagunton. I let Sagunton rebel by leaving it, cranking up the taxes, wrecking all the buildings and parking just outside so Carthage can't get clever and occupy it.

Poof, Roman Rebels between you and Carthago Nova|Baikor. Now what really rustles your jimmies is factions will make peace with the Roman Rebels. And everyone knows the false Romans will not dare to attack you in the same numbers as Carthage or the nearby Barbarians. So you have yourself a nice little buffer state that at the very least makes Carthage waste time recapturing their settlement. At best though.. no more war from that front by Carthage. They'll basically fizzle out. You may see sporadic attacks but they have to path from Carthago Nova to Baikor to Numantia (if they have it!) to Emporiae. It makes a huge difference. That leaves you free to build up in safety or attack from alternative approaches.

This is less of a boon for Gaul as it is much easier to cut across than Iberia. However in Macedonia, Greece, near-Anatolia and the western most parts of the Ptolemaic empire it will work efficiently. I've never tried it in lesser Germanica, Brittania or in the northeast.

It's a bit garney though isn't it. Personally thats the fun part for me. Sharing a boarder means your either very trusted or not, if you keep offering cash sums and tributes you can usually maintain peace for a prolong period of time. I'm not in too much rush to take on the Averni however for the exact reason of sharing boarders with Rome should they take Massylia.

[Uber Patriot]

I'm currently fighting a very gruelling Roman Campaign. The bloody days of Cannae seem like a distant memory for the overstretched Roman legions after 11 years of constant war.
Across the Adriatic Rome holds onto two small outposts whilst fending off constant Macedonian attacks. Rome lacks the resources to march inland, and Macedon can't quite drive back the stubborn Romans creating a bloody stalemate, with troops constantly being shipped over from Southern Italy to replace the mounting losses.

Meanwhile in Spain Rome has managed to drive out Carthage but the situation of precarious. Carthago Nova has been lost to rebels for the past three or so years and the traitors now threaten to expand at Rome's expense. The Gallaecci control about two thirds of the area and are eyeing Rome greedily, with their armies only scared off by the rapid movement of the only remaining Legion in the area. Unfortunately Carthage also threatens the Roman's only holding in Africa, Tingi, and the Roman legion is constantly shipped back and forth to deal with the threat. The Roman settlements are underdeveloped and on the brink of revolt, but the treasury is too bare for any significant long term solutions.

[Lord Dakier]

On my gallaeci campaign i had to deal with Carthage and Rome first. Even when you take all of the Peninsula you still have a crossing near Gadir so i bet Carthage wont let you sleep a lot. Rome presented a problem in 2.1 exactly because Emporiae but since you have taken it, they may leave you alone as long as Massilia stays greek, acting as a buffer. In my 2.5 Carthage Campaign, the free-greeks present at the moment the greatest economical and military power wich is interesting.

As to your military structure i used a similar one but with less Falarica and elite scutary. Never had more than 1 Elite infantry because they are suposed to be the best of the best.

It was something like 4 Scutari/caetrati maniples 3 Elite Scutari + 1 Elite infantry, 2 celtiberian spearmen,2 slingers, 2 Falarica specialy against Carthaginean elephants, 2 heavy cavalry, 3 medium or scutari cavalry and general.

The infantry deployed in the manipular chequered formation with the lighter infantry absorbing the first impact of the fight and the heavy in the second line charging over a tired exhausted enemy.

I would love to see a picture of your formation in battle with the selection. I do need to change mine the Elite scuttari thing is not done yet but shall be next time I play. I need to have stronger troops outfront. The Carthaginian infantry are not a force to be taken lightly and the bloodshed is unreal on the frontlines. To the back of the army I am dominant with missiles with my Falarica javelinmen which can route units very quickly. The crossing at Gadir I'm not too worried about as it creates a nice little bottleneck where an elite force which is well supplied can hold the line.

I'm currently fighting a very gruelling Roman Campaign. The bloody days of Cannae seem like a distant memory for the overstretched Roman legions after 11 years of constant war.
Across the Adriatic Rome holds onto two small outposts whilst fending off constant Macedonian attacks. Rome lacks the resources to march inland, and Macedon can't quite drive back the stubborn Romans creating a bloody stalemate, with troops constantly being shipped over from Southern Italy to replace the mounting losses.

Meanwhile in Spain Rome has managed to drive out Carthage but the situation of precarious. Carthago Nova has been lost to rebels for the past three or so years and the traitors now threaten to expand at Rome's expense. The Gallaecci control about two thirds of the area and are eyeing Rome greedily, with their armies only scared off by the rapid movement of the only remaining Legion in the area. Unfortunately Carthage also threatens the Roman's only holding in Africa, Tingi, and the Roman legion is constantly shipped back and forth to deal with the threat. The Roman settlements are underdeveloped and on the brink of revolt, but the treasury is too bare for any significant long term solutions.

It sounds like your having a tough time just holding down. your enemy. Is a tactical withdrawal not possible? Sometimes you may need to lose a few to make an overall gain. Again this is why I usually expand with Spain and Brittain if I play a European faction as you can hold off the enemy.

[Sertorio]

I would love to see a picture of your formation in battle with the selection...

A few pics of my battle line and some action pics. Note that im not rigid in my selection and i depploy similar troops filling the same role for more variety. At the time my PC could not use large and huge unit size.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

[z3n]

A few pics of my battle line and some action pics. Note that im not rigid in my selection and i depploy similar troops filling the same role for more variety. At the time my PC could not use large and huge unit size.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

hey buddy, try changing the unit size in the preference text file to this UNIT_SIZE:55. probably won't lag.

[Pink Elephants]

******* hard with this garrison script loool

[CTD_or_Bust]

If I was interested in role playing I would play on an easier difficulty (^_^)b
I play this mod for the challenge, the legions and the economics. I'm not one to adhere to standard legion compositions either.

[Lord Dakier]

It's very interesting to see how many have an open formation where mine are ultra compact. The whole idea of Roman armies when outnumbered was to stick in a tight formation where they could not be picked off. This usually helps keep casualties to a minimum something I strive to do more than anything. Due to the garrisson script I haven't even attacked on a siege yet. The losses can be immense.

Anyone with other factions than Gallaecci and Rome I would also like to see, someone stuck in the middle like Dacia sounds like an interesting campaign if anyone has something like that to show us.

[Ovidius Empiricus]

In my Rome 1-turn campaign, the Gallaeci, Averni and Greeks are all very strong. It's just awful. Emporiae in Spain got attacked early on by two huge Gallaeci armies before I was ready for it, so up to this point, the Gallaeci have taken all of Spain and much of the African coast. The Averni have practically wiped out the Belgae and since the Cimbri are gone they now have practically everything north of the alps to themselves.

Meanwhile, I've taken southern and western Greece and severely weakened the Macedonians, but the Free Greeks have a big chunk of Asia Minor. Pergamon is nearly extinct, Pontus is weak, and the Ptolomies and Seleucids are spread so thin (and fighting each other) that they won't be able to commit enough forces there to hold them back. I figure the Greeks will hit a wall if they start a war with Armenia or get as far as Antioch, but that'll take a while. I certainly can't try to attack them all the way over there as Rome when I have to deal with the barbarians right on my doorstep. I haven't gotten to the Marian Reforms yet, so somehow I need to hold them back and prepare for that. When I'm ready to expand some more, I think I should try to take Spain first and let the Gallaeci do what it wants with Carthage, but it's going to be tough with the Averni there too. I'm not looking forward to lots of hillfort battles with tons of horse archers in them, because that's been a real headache so far.

[Lord Dakier]

I'd personally start up a new conflict with Carthage and finish them off. Them move up into Spain. It may take longer but theres no chance of being surrounded that way. Although you could break through what I call the Massylian checkpoint.

[RafoutRoud]

Those balearic slingers, awww ye.

[Ovidius Empiricus]

I'd personally start up a new conflict with Carthage and finish them off. Them move up into Spain. It may take longer but theres no chance of being surrounded that way.

I'm still mulling it over, but I don't think that's a good idea. My goal is to take Spain and Africa first, then move into Gaul when I'm ready, mainly being on the defensive against the Averni for quite a while. But whichever approach I take, the Averni will continue attacking from the north. It seems better to keep my offensive and defensive forces "together" (though that loosens up as I expand farther into Spain) so they can reinforce one another if necessary and the supply lines of additional troops can easily support either depending on how things work out. And of course as soon as I can recruit troops in one of the newly conquered regions, they'd be able to support either effort easily. If on the other hand I take Carthage first, I'll have to do a whole lot of fighting on two fronts and not much killing two birds with one stone. That's all in addition to defending my eastern border (where Dacia looks very intimidating but hasn't yet attacked). I really would love to take Carthage though, since it must be destroyed. Eventually I probably will, at least once things have stabilized after the Marian Reforms and the situation in Spain is looking better, but I don't think I'll try to expand directly from there.

[Lord Dakier]

I'm still mulling it over, but I don't think that's a good idea. My goal is to take Spain and Africa first, then move into Gaul when I'm ready, mainly being on the defensive against the Averni for quite a while. But whichever approach I take, the Averni will continue attacking from the north. It seems better to keep my offensive and defensive forces "together" (though that loosens up as I expand farther into Spain) so they can reinforce one another if necessary and the supply lines of additional troops can easily support either depending on how things work out. And of course as soon as I can recruit troops in one of the newly conquered regions, they'd be able to support either effort easily. If on the other hand I take Carthage first, I'll have to do a whole lot of fighting on two fronts and not much killing two birds with one stone. That's all in addition to defending my eastern border (where Dacia looks very intimidating but hasn't yet attacked). I really would love to take Carthage though, since it must be destroyed. Eventually I probably will, at least once things have stabilized after the Marian Reforms and the situation in Spain is looking better, but I don't think I'll try to expand directly from there.

Well Carthage is already at war with Gallaecci are they not? Most of their forces are going to be towards the frontlines. Perhaps it would be wise to cut in closer to egypt as possible. You can use Sicily as a base to resupply. I usually create severa extra units who can just move into the army and be shared out for replenishment. It usually depends on how desperate the war in the north is.


I've prepared to stacks to send to Britain. I'll leave a stack their in cas ethe Belgae become too troublesome. I own all of Spain now and have begun recruitment of my elite army. This consits of 1 general, 1 Elite Gallaecci infantry, 4 elite scutarii, 4/6 scutarii, 2/4 Caetricati javelins, 2 heavy cav and 3 medium iberian cav. This will be the prized army that goes to Africa with the support of another stack. I'll then leave one more stack in the north should the Avernii decide to play up.

[Sertorio]

To Africa make room in your stack for falarica Infantry to take care of those elephants of Carthage.

[Lord Dakier]

To Africa make room in your stack for falarica Infantry to take care of those elephants of Carthage.

Whats the difference between the Falarica and Caetrica? I mean the Caetrica can be used as more reliable infantry than the Falarica, I notice the Falarica can skirmish and use flame missiles though.